A new major study showed men and women who ate a handful of peanuts daily increased longevity. Results were strongest when peanuts were eaten daily, reducing death from multiple causes by up to 20%, but benefits were also seen with eating peanuts less than once a week, once a week, and two to four times a week with 7%, 11%, and 13% risk reductions respectively. In addition, it was shown that frequent peanut eaters had lower BMIs and were less likely to gain weight.

The study, “Association of Nut Consumption with Total and Cause-Specific Mortality” tracked almost 119,000 men and women from the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health professionals Follow-up Study for a 30-year period, and used multivariate analysis, making it the largest and strongest study to date looking at death from all causes and nut consumption. It was conducted jointly by Harvard Medical School, Harvard School of Public Health, Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, and Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center at Indiana University.

In looking at specific causes of death, eating peanuts daily reduced the risk of dying from heart disease by 29% and cancer by 11%, compared to those who never ate peanuts or nuts. They also found eating an ounce of peanuts at least twice a week increased longevity and reduced death from diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, infection, kidney disease, and respiratory diseases.